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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Esports devider Aurora Gaming punches M7 worlds ticket; TNC keeps Cinderella run going

Aurora Gaming punches M7 worlds ticket; TNC keeps Cinderella run going

Published Oct 25, 2025 10:32 am

At A Glance

  • Aurora Gaming took down Team Liquid Philippines, 3-1 to punch its ticket to M7 world championships after advancing to the MPL Philippines Season 16 Grand Finals, Friday, Oct. 25 at the Cuneta Astrodome.
Aurora Gaming took down Team Liquid Philippines, 3-1, to punch its ticket to M7 world championships after advancing to the MPL Philippines Season 16 Grand Finals on Friday, Oct. 25 at the Cuneta Astrodome.
The Northern Lights, coming in as the top seed in the playoffs, stamped their class all over the defending champions in their upper bracket finals clash.
After splitting the first two games, Aurora took over in the last two games with the Northern Lights shining bright in Game 3 that saw them immediately seize control with a quick 5-0 kill score and 6k gold lead inside the first 10 minutes of the contest.
Aurora then dominated the map control and starved TLPH from getting resources before scoring a wipeout at the 18th minute mark to break the tie and move a win away from the Finals.
Smelling blood in the water, Aurora showed no letup in Game 4 as regular season MVP Dylan “Light” Catipon provided a sturdy frontline and perfectly timed setups on his Gatotkaca pick to enable their damage dealers led by the surprise gold lane Ixia pick.
Meanwhile, TNC kept its Cinderella run going, pulling off a stunning upset of M6 world champion Onic Philippines, 3-2, in the lower bracket semifinals.
With the series tied, 2-2, the Phoenix Army caught the Super Family off guard behind a masterful showing in the deciding Game 5.
Showing great poise in the face of pressure, Justine “Zaida” Palma picked up two quick kills in the decider as TNC rode the strong start and never looked back from there to complete the huge win.
With the outcome of the series, Aurora awaits its grand finals opponent, which will be determined by the winner of the lower bracket finals clash between TNC and TLPH.
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